Plug and Play Method and System of Viewing Live and Recorded Contents

ABSTRACT

A plug and play method of viewing live and recorded contents includes the steps of: requesting information of a capturing device by a remote control center; sending an accessing request from an Internet-enabled receiving device to the remote control center through Internet; verifying whether the information of the capturing device matches with the accessing request from the receiving device by the remote control center; and establishing a communication channel between the capturing device and the receiving device to enable contents captured by the capturing device to be transmitted to the receiving device in a live manner through Internet.

CROSS REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATION

This is a Continuation-In-Part application that claims priority to U.S.non-provisional application, application Ser. No. 14/670,402, filed Mar.26, 2015, which is a Continuation application that claims priority toU.S. non-provisional application, application Ser. No. 14/495,861, filedSep. 24, 2014, the entire contents of each of which are expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

NOTICE OF COPYRIGHT

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialwhich is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to any reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as itappears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patent files orrecords, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Field of Invention

The present invention relates to an Internet based monitoring system,and more particular to a plug and play method and system for viewinglive and recorded contents, wherein no IP (Internet protocol) address isrequired for configuring a capturing device in order to enable the userto view the live and/or recorded contents from the capturing devicethrough Internet.

Description of Related Arts

Surveillance camera has been configured into Internet camera, such as IPcamera or network camera, to provide an alternative way for people toconveniently check in on their pets at home from their desk at work orto monitor their business from their computer at home in real time. Inparticular, once the IP camera is configured to connect to the Internet,the IP camera allow people to view the live video remotely by anyInternet-enabled electronic device such as personal computer, laptop,tablet, or mobile phone.

In addition to Internet service, IP camera requires an electrical powersupply remained in connection, an Internet environment, such as DSLconnection, Wi-Fi environment, mobile Internet, and etc., and a staticIP address in order to enable the connection between the IP camera andthe Internet. Therefore, each IP camera has its own IP address in orderto link to the Internet. However, the configuration of IP camera iscomplexity that the user must have a certain level of communicativeinformation technology to look for the IP address assigned on a network.Generally speaking, when the computer is connected to the networkthrough Internet each time, an IP address will be automaticallyassigned. However, most users are unable to search for the IP address orare unsure whether the assigned IP address is the static IP address.Accordingly, the general consumers must call the technical support ofthe Internet service provider for help. It is time consuming for theuser to configure the IP camera before it is operated. When one of theconfiguring steps of the IP camera is uncorrected, the IP camera willnot be worked as advertised. It is worth mentioning that most Internetservice providers supply dynamic IP address to the customers, whereinthe dynamic IP address will be changed frequently. Therefore, before thesetup of the IP camera, the user must confirm whether the IP addressfrom the Internet service provider is the static IP address or thedynamic IP address. Generally, the user will have to pay additionalmonthly fee to the Internet service provider in order to obtain thestatic IP address.

After the time consuming configuration of the IP camera, the IP cameracannot be worked right the way. The user must install or downward acorresponding application in the Internet-enabled electronic device. Inother words, another configuration of the application is required forconnecting the Internet-enabled electronic device with the correspondingIP camera. It is worth mentioning that when the user wants to view thelive video from the IP camera by different electronic devices, theapplication must be installed into each electronic device. For example,if the user wants to access the IP camera by the laptop, tablet andmobile phone, the application must be individually installed into allthe laptop, tablet and mobile phone while the configuration of theapplication must be individually setup in the laptop, tablet, and mobilephone.

Furthermore, if the IP camera is connected to a public Internet ratherthan a private IP configuration, the IP camera becomes open to anyone.Hackers and/or hoaxers can easily hack to the IP camera to unsanctionedinvasion of privacy. Besides, the video records of the IP camera aregenerally sent and recorded in a server connected therewith in the sitewhere the IP camera located and the user is required to access suchvideo records from the server via the Internet connection between theserver and the Internet-enabled electronic devices as mentioned above.Some web-based service providers set up the server for multiple users toregister and upload their video records of their IP cameras so that theusers may access the video records from the servers via Internet bylogging in the web site designated by the service provider. However,such public server must be a system that is big and powerful enough forkeeping huge memories, disk space and bandwidth of video records andmulti-million users to access at the same time. It is complicated andcostly and thus generally requires the users to pay expensive membershipfee to receive such service.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The invention is advantageous in that it provides a plug and play methodand system for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein no IP(Internet protocol) address is required for configuring a capturingdevice in order to enable the user to view the live and/or recordedcontents from the capturing device through Internet.

Another advantage of the invention is to a plug and play method andsystem for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein the configurationof the capturing device is simple and quick as plug and play that byconnecting the capturing device to the remote control center throughInternet, the captured information of the capturing device willautomatically be remotely accessible by the owner of the capturingdevice through his or her Internet-enabled electronic receiving devicesvia Internet. Therefore, the configuring step of the capturing device issimplified that any common consumer or user is able to setup thecapturing device in seconds.

Another advantage of the invention is to a plug and play method andsystem for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein two or morereceiving devices can be linked to two or more capturing devices and theremote control center so as to enable the receiving devices to receivedifferent contents from different capturing devices at differentlocations.

Another advantage of the invention is to a plug and play method andsystem for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein the receivingdevice can access the content from the capturing device in a real timemanner.

Another advantage of the invention is to a plug and play method andsystem for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein the content fromthe capturing device can be directly saved in the storage device andplayed back to the receiving device.

Another advantage of the invention is to a plug and play method andsystem for viewing live and recorded contents, wherein the receivingdevice is able to access the designated capturing device throughInternet without the information of the IP address of the capturingdevice, such that no particular application or software is required forbeing installed or downloaded to the receiving device. In other words,the user does not require any configuring step for the receiving deviceto link with the capturing device and can view the live contents fromthe capturing device through any web browser or his or her receivingdevice, such as an Internet-enabled electronic device.

Additional advantages and features of the invention will become apparentfrom the description which follows, and may be realized by means of theinstrumentalities and combinations particular point out in the appendedclaims.

According to the present invention, the foregoing and other objects andadvantages are attained by a plug and play method of viewing live andrecorded contents, comprising the following steps.

(1) Request locator information of a capturing device, such as CAM IDand PIN code that substantially protects and provides high security oflive video access and privacy, by a remote control center once thecapturing device is connected to a power supply and the remote controlcenter through Internet, wherein the locator information of thecapturing device does not contain any IP address of capturing device.

(2) Send an accessing request for the capturing device from anInternet-enabled receiving device to the remote control center throughInternet.

(3) Verify whether the locator information of the capturing devicematches with the accessing request from the receiving device by theremote control center.

(4) Establish a communication channel between the capturing device andthe receiving device to enable contents captured by the capturing deviceto be transmitted to the receiving device in a live manner through theInternet.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the presentinvention comprises a system for viewing live and recorded contents byan Internet-enabled receiving device, comprising:

at least a capturing device containing locator information that does notcontain an IP address and being configured for linking with thereceiving device through Internet; and

a remote control center operatively linked to the capturing devicethrough Internet and arranged for receiving an accessing request fromthe receiving device through Internet, wherein the locator informationof the capturing device is sent to the remote control center when thecapturing device is powered and connected to the remote control center,wherein the remote control center comprises a verifying module forverifying whether the locator information of the capturing devicematches with the accessing request from the receiving device, and acommunication channel being established between the capturing device andthe receiving device once the locator information is verified forenabling contents captured by the capturing device to be transmitted tothe receiving device in a live manner through Internet.

In one embodiment, the locator information of the capturing deviceincludes a CAM ID and a PIN code that substantially protects andprovides high security of live video access and privacy.

Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from aconsideration of the ensuing description and drawings.

These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following detailed description,the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a system according to a preferredembodiment of the present invention, illustrating the relationship amongthe receiving device, capturing device, storage device, and remotecontrol center.

FIG. 2 illustrates a communication channel between the capturing deviceand the receiving device through the remote control center according tothe above preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a recording channel between the capturing device andthe storage device and a playback channel between the storage device andthe receiving device through the remote control center according to theabove preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates the communication channel, the recording channel, andthe playback channel linked among the capturing device, the receivingdevice, and the storage device through the remote control centeraccording to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an alternative communication channel between thecapturing device and the receiving device through the remote controlcenter according to the above preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of the capturing device according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of the storage device according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of the receiving device according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of an access screen of receiving device,illustrating how a locator information is inputted and an accessingrequest for the capturing device is sent from the receiving device tothe remote control center through Internet, according to the abovepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram a system according to another preferredembodiment of the present invention, illustrating the relationship amongthe receiving device, capturing device, storage device, and remotecontrol center.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The following description is disclosed to enable any person skilled inthe art to make and use the present invention. Preferred embodiments areprovided in the following description only as examples and modificationswill be apparent to those skilled in the art. The general principlesdefined in the following description would be applied to otherembodiments, alternatives, modifications, equivalents, and applicationswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a plug and play system of viewinglive and recorded contents according to a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention is illustrated, wherein the system comprises at leasta capturing device 10, a remote control center 20 for linking thecapturing device 10 with at least one Internet-enabled electronicreceiving device 30 and at least a storage device 40. Accordingly,referring to FIGS. 1-5, the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention further provides a plug and play method of viewing live andrecorded contents which comprises the following steps.

(1) Request locator information of the capturing device 10 by the remotecontrol center 20 once the capturing device 10 is powered and connectedto the remote control center 20 through the Internet, wherein thelocator information of the capturing device 10 does not contain any IPaddress of the capturing device 10. The remote control center 20 willautomatically configure the capturing device 10, as shown in FIG. 6,without obtaining any IP address of the capturing device 10. In otherwords, no IP address is required for configuration of the capturingdevice 10.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, thelocator information includes a CAM ID and a PIN code of the capturingdevice 10. Each capturing device 10 should have a different CAM ID andPIN code provided either on the capturing device 10 or the packaging ofthe capturing device 10 for identification and verification, wherein thePIN code substantially protects and provides high security of live videoaccess and privacy.

(2) In order to enable the receiving device 30 to access the capturingdevice, send an accessing request for the capturing device 10 with theCAM ID and PIN code of the locator information of the capturing device10 from the receiving device 30 to the remote control center 20 throughthe Internet, as shown in FIG. 9. The remote control center 20 isarranged to automatically configure the receiving device 30, as shown inFIG. 8.

(3) Verify whether the locator information of the capturing device 10matches with the accessing request from the receiving device 30 by theremote control center 20.

(4) Establish a communication channel 41 between the capturing device 10and the receiving device 30 to enable the contents captured by thecapturing device 10 to be transmitted to the receiving device 30 in alive manner through the Internet, as shown in FIG. 2.

According to the preferred embodiment, the remote control center 20 willsearch and locate the corresponding capturing device 10 in response tothe CAM ID and the PIN code of the locator information received from thereceiving device 30. Once the remote control center 20 grants the accessbetween the receiving device 30 and the capturing device 10, thecommunication channel 41 will be automatically established fortransferring the contents therebetween. If the access is denied by theremote control center 20, the remote control center 20 will send anotification to the receiving device 30 to indicate the connectionfailure or the access is denied.

Accordingly, the user is able to open any web browser, for example anAPP (application of IOS or Android operation system), in the receivingdevice 30 in order to connect to the remote control center 20, such thatthe content captured by the capturing device 10 can be accessed by thereceiving device 30 via the web browser through the communicationchannel 41 via the Internet. In other words, according to the preferredembodiment, once the communication channel 41 between the receivingdevice 30 and the capturing device 10 is established through the abovestep (1) to (4), an icon is preferred to be created when the web browseror APP is opened in the receiving device 30, so that when a user wouldlike to access the live content captured by the capturing device 10 anytime, the user may simply click on the icon to open a window to receiveand view the content.

According to the preferred embodiment, the capturing device 10 can beplaced at any desired location and can be a surveillance camera, adigital camera, a web camera, a video recorder, and/or an audio recorderfor capturing image content, video content, audio content or otherparameters. The locator information is pre-stored in the capturingdevice 10. According to preferred embodiment, the locator informationincludes the CAM ID and the PIN coder of the capturing device 10 whileeach capturing device 10 has an unique CAM ID and PIN code foridentification and verification.

It is worth mentioning that it should be considered as alternative modeto person skilled in art to use or include a serial number, an accessingcode, or other identification characters as the PIN code.

It is also worth mentioning that the CAM ID is an identificationinformation of the capturing device 10 assigned by the manufacturer ofthe capturing device 10 or the remote control center 20 for thatparticular capturing device 10. A “Media Access Control” address (MACaddress) could be used as the CAM ID that it is a unique identifierassigned to network interfaces for communications on the physicalnetwork segment. MAC addresses can be used as a network address for mostIEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 803 networktechnologies, including Ethernet. Logically, MAC addresses are used inthe media access control protocol sublayer of the OSI reference model.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the PINcode is embodied as a four digits secure number that it is as known likea bank PIN code when a user uses debit card or credit card. It can beassigned to the capturing device 10 by the manufacturer thereof orcreated by the owner of the capturing device 10. It is worth mentioningthat, in order to prevent the unique CAM ID of the capturing device 10be guessed or figured out by anyone other than the owner of thecapturing device 10, the combination of the CAM ID and PIN code as thelocator information can substantially protects video contents privacyfrom being hacked over the Internet.

The remote control center 20 is embodied as an Internet-based serverthat the user is able to access the remote control center 20 throughInternet or any web browser, such as “GoogleChrome” or “Safari” fromdifferent operating systems.

In the step (1), when the capturing device 10, which is positioned at apredetermined location, is electrically powered and connected with theInternet with cable or wirelessly with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, mobile Internetsuch as 4G and LTE, or etc., the capturing device 10 can be connected tothe remote control center 20 through the Internet. The remote controlcenter is configured to request locator information from the capturingdevice 10 and the capturing device 10 is configured to send the locatorinformation, including the CAM ID and the PIN code, to the remotecontrol center 20 to identified itself before the remote control center20 which is configured to save the specific locator information of thatcapturing device 10 for further verification with the receiving device30.

The user of the receiving device 30, embodied as an Internet-enabledcomputerizing device, such as a personal computer, a notebook computer,a tablet, a iPad, and a mobile phone, according to the preferredembodiment of the present invention, can link his or her receivingdevice 30 with the remote control center 20 through Internet. In otherwords, the capturing device 10 is connected to the remote control center20 through Internet. As long as the internet connection is established,the remote control center 20 will automatically request the capturingdevice 10 to send the CAM ID and the PIN code of the locator informationof the capturing device 10 to the remote control center 20. When thelocator information of the capturing device 10 is accepted by the remotecontrol center 20, the configuration of the capturing device 10 iscompleted.

It is worth mentioning that the plug and play system of the presentinvention can be arranged as one capturing device 10 to one receivingdevice 30, one capturing device 10 to many receiving devices 30, manycapturing devices 10 to one receiving device 30, or many capturingdevices 10 to many receiving devices 30 configurations. Therefore,different capturing devices 10 can be placed at different locations anddifferent receiving devices 30 can access each and every capturingdevice 10 to view and/or listen the contents thereof.

Accordingly, a user registering step is preferably completed in the step(1). The user registering step comprises a step of inputting userinformation and locator information to the remote control center 20, asshown in FIG. 9, in order to identify the ownership of the capturingdevice 10. Preferably, a user pass code is sent by the remote controlcenter 20 to the user.

In the step (2), in order to access the capturing device 10 through thereceiving device 30, the receiving device 30 is required to firstsending the accessing request to the remote control center 20 throughthe Internet. Accordingly, the receiving device 30 is anInternet-enabled receiving device such as a personal computer, laptop,tablet, or mobile phone that is able to access the content from thecapturing device 10. For example, the accessing request contains arequest of the locator information including the and the PIN code of thecapturing device 10. For example, the user can login the APP or visitthe web site of the remote control center 20 through the web browser inhis or her receiving device 30 and select by clicking a specific icon ofthe designated capturing device 10. Then, the receiving device 30 sendsan accessing request for the capturing device 10 to the remote controlcenter 20 through the Internet, as shown in FIG. 9, and then the remotecontrol center 20 will automatically configure the receiving device.

The remote control center 20 comprises a verifying module 21 forverifying whether the locator information i.e. the CAM ID and PIN code,of the capturing device 10 matches with the accessing request from thereceiving device 30. After the remote control center 20 verifies thematch between the capturing device 10 and the receiving device 30, thecommunication channel 41 is established between the capturing device 10and the receiving device 30, as shown in FIG. 2. Then, the content beingcaptured by the capturing device 10 is continuously transmitted to thereceiving device in a live manner through the Internet and such contentis viewable in the receiving device 30 by means of a viewer programstored in the receiving device 30.

It is worth mentioning that once the connection between the capturingdevice 10 and the remote control center 20 is established and configured(the step (1)), and after the receiving device 30 has sent the accessingrequest for the capturing device 10 (the step (2)), any subsequentaccessing request sent from the receiving device 30 for that designatedcapturing device 10 does not require the remote control center 20 torequest for locater information from that designated capturing device 10again and the remote control center 20 will directly verify whether thelocator information of the capturing device 10 matches with theaccessing request from the receiving device 30. According to thepreferred embodiment, the plug and play system does not repeat the step(1) and simply execute the steps (2)-(4) during a session of access bythe receiving device 30 stays on. After the previous session of accessis off, when the user would like to access the capturing device 10 againnext time, it is preferred to create a new session through the step (1)to (4) again until this session is closed.

In view of above, it is appreciated that the setting up andconfiguration of the capturing device 10 is as simply as plugging in theelectrical power connection and internet connection of each capturingdevice 10. The remote control center 20 can then configure theconnection between that capturing device 10 therewith and enable areceiving device 30 registered and configured with the remote controlcenter 20 to access the contents captured by the capturing devices 10 ina live time manner simply by clicking in the APP and play the capturedcontents.

As shown in FIG. 3, the remote control center 30 further comprises arecording channel 42 being established between the capturing device 10and the storage device 40 and a playback channel 43 between the storagedevice 40 and the capturing device 10, wherein the storage device 40 canbe built in the remote control center 30 that when the content capturedby the capturing device 10 is transmitted from the capturing device 10to the receiving device 30, the content is also transmitted to thestorage device 40 in the remote control center 20 to save the content ina storage hard drive of the storage device 40 so that the receivingdevice 30 can playback the content anytime via the playback channel 43from the storage device 40. Alternatively, the storage device 40 couldbe an independent device located in different location than the remotecontrol center 30, and accordingly, the step (1) may further comprisesthe following steps.

(1.1) Request information of the storage device 40 by the remote controlcenter 20 when the storage device 40 is connected to the remote controlcenter 20 through Internet. Accordingly, the storage device 40 can be ahard disk installed into the computerizing device or a cloud storagebeing pre-setup by the user. The information of the storage device 40can be the location of the hard disk or an address of the cloud storage,wherein the user is authorized to access the storage device 40. Theremote control center 20 will automatically configure the storage device40 as shown in FIG. 7.

(1.2) Verify whether the information of the storage device 40 matcheswith the information of the capturing device 10 by the remote controlcenter 20. Likewise, the verifying module 21 of the remote controlcenter 20 will verify the match between the information of the storagedevice 40 and the information of the capturing device 10.

(1.3) Establish the recording channel 42 between the capturing device 10and the storage device 40 to enable the contents captured by thecapturing device 10 to be transmitted and stored in the storage device40, as shown in FIG. 3.

(1.4) Verify whether the information of the storage device 40 matcheswith the accessing request from the receiving device 30 by the remotecontrol center 20. Once the contents captured by the capturing device 10are stored in the storage device 40, the user is able to view contentsin the storage device 40. The verifying module 21 of the remote controlcenter 20 will verify the match between the information of the storagedevice 40 and the information of the receiving device 30.

(1.5) Establish the playback channel 43 between the storage device 40and the receiving device 30 to enable said contents stored in thestorage device 40 to be transmitted to the receiving device 30 throughInternet. Accordingly, the user is able to access the contents stored inthe storage device 40 through the receiving device 30 anytime via theplayback channel 43 after the remote control center 20 grants the accessbetween the receiving device 30 and the storage device 40 after securityvalidation via the verifying module 21. Likewise, the user is able toopen any web browser in the receiving device 30 in order to connect tothe remote control center 20, such that the content stored in thestorage device 40 can be accessed by the receiving device 30 via the webbrowser through the playback channel 43.

It is worth mentioning that the user is able to access the contents fromthe capturing device 10 by the receiving device 30 through thecommunication channel 41 or the playback channel 43, as shown in FIG. 4.Through the communication channel 41, the user can view or listen thevideo and/audio contents from the capturing device 10 in a real timemanner. Through the playback channel 43, the user can view or listen thevideo and/audio contents from the capturing device 10 stored in thestorage device 40.

As shown in FIG. 5, the remote control center 30 further comprises analternative communication channel 44 being established between thestorage device 40 and the receiving device 30 to enable the contentscaptured by the capturing device 10 to be transmitted to the receivingdevice 30 from the storage device 40 in a live manner through theInternet.

Accordingly, the user is able to access the content from the capturingdevice 10 in real time through either the communication channel 41 orthe alternative communication channel 44. The content is directly sentfrom the capturing device 10 to the receiving device 30 in real timethrough the communication channel 41 once the capturing device 10 andthe receiving device 30 are connected to the Internet. On the otherhand, the content is indirectly sent from the capturing device 10 to thereceiving device 30 in real time through the storage device 30 via thealternative communication channel 44 as long as the capturing device 10,the receiving device 30, and the storage device 40 are connected witheach other through the Internet. It is worth mentioning that through thealternative communication channel 44, the content will be delayed to besent to the receiving device 30 in less than one second. In particular,the delay time for the alternative communication channel 44 is about 0.3second or less. Therefore, the user is still able to view or listen thevideo and/audio contents from the capturing device 10 in real timethrough the alternative communication channel 44.

In accordance with the plug and play system of the present invention,the storage device 40 is an optional component, wherein, for real timeaccess of the content being captured by the capturing device 10, as longas the capturing device 10, remote control center 20 and the receivingdevice 30 are connected with each other through the internet, thecontent being captured by the capturing device 10 can be accessed viathe receiving device 30 anytime and anywhere, and thus the remotecontrol center 20 may not required, like the conventional system, tohave a powerful server for computation and huge storage device forrecording all contents from numerous of capturing devices 10. Therefore,the cost for setting up the remote control center 20 can be greatlyreduced. Even a general personal computer may be set up as the server ofthe remote control center 20, depending on the number of capturingdevices 10 and receiving devices 30 are required to be linked with.

According to the preferred embodiment, the capturing device 10 isconfigured between a public mode and a private mode via the remotecontrol center 20. In the public mode, two or more of the receivingdevices 30 are allowed to access the contents captured by the capturingdevice 10. In the private mode, only the receiving device 30 underauthorized is allow to access the contents captured by the capturingdevice 10.

In particular, in the public mode, the contents captured by thecapturing device 10 are transmitted to the receiving device 30 throughthe alternative communication channel 44. In the private mode, thecontents captured by the capturing device 10 are transmitted to thereceiving device 30 through the communication channel 41.

When other users use the receiving devices 30 to connect to the remotecontrol center 20, the users are able to see all the capturing devices10 in the public mode. Without any permission by the owner of thecapturing device 10, other users are able to access all the capturingdevices 10 in the public mode. In other words, when the owner of thecapturing device 10 sets the public mode, the contents from thecapturing device 10 can be broadcasted through the alternativecommunication channel 41.

Accordingly, the user is also able to invite friends and families toshare the contents captured by the capturing device 10. By invitingother members, the remote control center 20 will send a notification toeach invited member, wherein the notification will include informationof the capturing device 10 and/or a pass code for the invited member.Therefore, the invited members are able to access the content from thecapturing device 10 by their receiving devices 30 when the receivingdevices 30 are connected to the remote control center 20 by any webbrowser. It is worth mentioning that the invited members can access thecontents from the capturing device 10 through the communication channel41 or the alternative communication channel 44.

According to the preferred embodiment, the communication channel 41 andthe alternative communication channel 44 are two-way channels. Throughthe communication channel 41, the user at the capturing device 10 cancommunicate with the user at the receiving device 30, such as a voice orvideo conference. It is worth mentioning that the capturing device 10can be the same as the receiving device 30, wherein the capturing device10 and the receiving device 30 are able to send and receive differentcontents through the communication channel 41. For example, the userwith the receiving device 30 can see and listen to his or her pet athome when the capturing device 10 is placed at a desired location in thehouse. The user with the receiving device 30 can also talk to the pet athome through the two-way communication channel 41. Likewise, thealternative communication channel 44 can also work as the communicationchannel 41, wherein the difference between the alternative communicationchannel 44 and the communication channel 41 is that the content from thecapturing device 10 passes through the storage device 40 to thereceiving device 30 via the alternative communication channel 44.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of thecapturing device 10 by the remote control center 20. Accordingly, one ormore capturing devices 10 are connected to a local router of a localnetwork in order to connect to the remote control center 20 through theInternet. Once the capturing device 10 is connected to the remotecontrol center 20, the information of the capturing device 10 with thelocal router, such as information of local router being support uPnP(Universal Plug and Play), STUN (Session Traversal Utilities)/TURN(Traversal Using Relay NAT for NAT (network address translator), will beadditionally collected by the remote control center 20. Once theconfiguration of the capturing device 10 is automatically completed bythe remote control center 20, the receiving device 30 is ready to accessthe content, such as video data, through the remote control center 20.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention,referring to FIG. 6, the configuration of the capturing device 10 by theremote control center 20 comprises the following steps:

(i) activating the capturing device 10;

(ii) checking whether the local router of the capturing device 10supporting uPnP;

if it is supported, adding port mapping for whether local router of thecapturing device 10, and recording the router port mapping and networkinformation to database of the remote control center 20;

if it is not supported, connecting the remote control center 20STUN/TURN service to get NAT similar type information in the cloudserver located network, and recording the NAT information in thedatabase of the remote control center 20;

(iii) getting corresponding cloud server network information of thecapturing device 10 from the database of the remote control center 20;and

(iv) determining whether there is any cloud server information,

if not, ending the configuration;

if yes, determining whether a cloud server type in an external network,

if yes, connecting the cloud server and sending the video data andending the configuration;

if not, determining whether the cloud server has port mappinginformation;

if yes, connecting the cloud server and sending the video data andending the configuration;

if no, using acquired NAT information of the network of the capturingdevice 10 and cloud servers network for penetration, and determiningwhether NAT penetration is successful;

if yes, connecting the cloud server point-to-point and sending the videodata and ending the configuration;

if not, recording the failure information to the database of the remotecontrol center 20, wherein the cloud server will also use thisinformation in the remote control center 20, and notifying the userconnection cloud server failed on receiving device 30 and ending theconfiguration.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating the configuration of the storagedevice 40 by the remote control center 20, wherein the storage device 40is embodied as a cloud service as an example.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention,referring to FIG. 7, the configuration of the storage device 40 by theremote control center 20 which is embodied as a cloud service by theremote control center 20 comprises the following steps:

(i) activating the cloud server of the remote control center 20;

(ii) determining whether the cloud server is an external network server;

if yes, recording the cloud server network information in serverdatabase of the remote control center 20;

if not, determining whether the cloud server local router supports uPnP,

wherein if it is supported, adding port mapping for the cloud serverlocal router and recording the router port mapping and networkinformation to server database of the remote control center 20, and

f it is not supported, connecting the remote control center 20 serverSTUN/TURN service to get NAT similar type information in the capturingdevice 10 located network and recording the NAT information in serverdatabase of remote control center 20;

(iii) connecting the remote control center 20 and getting correspondingcloud server network information of the capturing device 10 formdatabase of the remote control center 20; and

(iv) checking whether the capturing device 10 is online;

if not, notifying user the capturing device 10 is not online and endingthe configuration;

if yes, determining whether the cloud server has port mappinginformation;

if yes, connecting cloud server and sending the video data and endingthe configuration;

if not, using acquired NAT information of network of the capturingdevice 10 and cloud server network for penetration and determiningwhether NAT penetration is successful;

if yes, connecting cloud server point-to-point and sending the videodata and ending the configuration;

if not, recording the failure information to database of the remotecontrol center 20, notifying the user connection to the capturing device10 failed to obtain video data and ending configuration.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating the configuration of the receivingdevice 30 by the remote control center 20. It is worth mentioning thatthe capturing device 10, the storage device 40, and the receiving device30 are automatically configured by the remote control center 20.

According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention,referring to FIG. 8, the configuration of the receiving device 30 by theremote control center 20 comprises the following steps:

(i) activating the receiving device 30;

(ii) connecting the remote control center 20 and getting the capturingdevice 10 corresponding network information from server database of theremote control center 20; and

(iii) determining whether the capturing device 10 has a router portmapping;

if yes, connecting the receiving device 30 with the capturing device 10and ending the configuration;

if not, connecting the remote control center 20 server STUN/TURN serviceto get NAT similar type information in the receiving device 30 locatednetwork, using acquired NAT information of the capturing device 10network and receiving device 30 network for penetration, and determiningwhether penetration is successful;

if yes, connecting the receiving device 30 to the capturing device 10point-to-point and ending the configuration;

if not, using the capturing device 10 corresponding network informationfrom server database of the remote control center 20 and determiningwhether there is cloud server information;

if not, notifying the user connection to cloud server failed on thereceiving device 30 and ending the configuration;

if yes, determining whether the cloud server is in an external network;

if yes, connecting the cloud server to get video data and ending theconfiguration;

if not, determining whether the cloud server has port mappinginformation;

if yes, connecting the cloud server to get video data and endingconfiguration;

if not, using acquired NAT information of the receiving device 30network and the cloud server network for penetration and determiningwhether NAT penetration is successful;

if yes, connecting the cloud server point-to-point and getting the videodata and ending configuration;

if not, recording the failure information to server database of theremote control center 20, notifying the user connection to the cloudserver failed on the receiving device 30, and ending the configuration,wherein the cloud server will also use this information in the remotecontrol center 20 service.

It is worth mentioning that for mobile phone or tablet user, the remotecontrol center 20 can provide an application (APP) to download to thereceiving device 30, such that the configuration of the application willbe automatically configured in the receiving device 30 by the remotecontrol center 20 to link with the capturing device 10.

FIG. 10 illustrates an alternative mode of the above preferredembodiment, wherein the system comprises at least a capturing device 10,a remote control center 20 for linking the capturing device 10 with atleast one Internet-enabled electronic receiving device 30. Accordingly,the capturing device 10 can be a vehicle camera, a surveillance camera,or the like that the capturing device 10 is arranged for capturing liveand recorded contents.

The system further comprises a communication link linked to thecapturing device 10 to the remote control center 20 through Internet. Asshown in FIG. 10, the communication link comprises a download path 51,an upload path 52 configured within the download path 51, and acommunication channel 53.

The download path 51 is formed between the capturing device 10 and theremote control center 20 to enable download content from the remotecontrol center 20 to be downloaded to the capturing device 30 throughthe download path 51. Accordingly, the download content can be a mapdata downloaded to the capturing device 10, wherein the capturing device10, especially for the vehicle camera, is able to execute the map dataas arbitrary geospatial data. In one embodiment, the download contentcan be a GPS data downloaded to the capturing device 10 in order toprovide location and time information for the capturing device 10. Inone embodiment, the download content can be a firmware update datadownloaded to the capturing device 10, such that the capturing device 10can be automatically or manually updated its software for control,monitoring and data manipulation of the capturing device 10. In anotherembodiment, the download content can be a control data downloaded to thecapturing device for remotely controlling an operation of the capturingdevice 10. It is worth mentioning that the upload content can be thecaptured images from the capturing device 10 to be uploaded to theremote control center 20. Alternatively, the upload content can be astatus of the capturing device 10, such as the operating data thereof,to be uploaded to the remote control center 20, such that the user isable to monitor and check the operational status of the capturing device10.

Accordingly, the remote control center 20 comprises a storage device 40to store the upload content from the capturing device 10. Preferably,the storage device 40 is a “Cloud” storage that the upload content canbe uploaded to and saved in the storage device via Internet. It is worthmentioning that the remote control center 20 has a firewall that isdesigned to block unauthorized access while permitting outwardcommunication. In other words, the download content can be simplydownloaded from the remote control center 20 to capturing device 10.However, the firewall of the remote control center will block anyreceiving content sent from the capturing device 10. Therefore, theupload path 52 is formed within the download path 51 to bypass thefirewall of the remote control center 20. In other words, the uploadcontent can be easily bypassed the firewall of the remote control center20 to be uploaded thereto. Preferably, the upload path 52 is partitionedfrom the download path 51 to share a bandwidth thereof.

It is worth mentioning that each of the download path 51 and the uploadpath 52 is a one-way path, wherein the download content can only bedownloaded along the download path 51 and the upload content can only beuploaded along the upload path 52 within the download path 51, such thatthe traveling directions of the download path 51 and the upload path 52are opposite. It is worth mentioning that the bandwidth ratio of thedownload path 51 and the upload path 52 can be selectively adjusted.Preferably, the bandwidth of the upload path 52 is about 10-20% of thebandwidth of the download path 51. Therefore, the upload content isuploaded from the capturing device 10 to the remote control center 20 atthe same time when the upload content is captured by the capturingdevice 10 in a live manner. For example, the capturing device 10 is ableto capture the images in a live manner and instantly upload the liveimages to the remote control center 20. At the same time, the capturedevice 10 is able to download the GPS data from the remote controlcenter 20 to incorporate with the live images.

The communication channel 43 is formed between the remote control center20 and the receiving device 30 to enable the upload content captured bythe capturing device 10 to be viewed by the receiving device 30 in alive manner through Internet. Accordingly, the user is able to use thereceiving device 30 to view the live image captured by the capturingdevice 10. In addition, the user is able to use the receiving device 30to control the capturing device 10 by sending a control signal throughthe remote control center 20 to the capturing device 10 along thedownload path 51.

One skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment of thepresent invention as shown in the drawings and described above isexemplary only and not intended to be limiting.

It will thus be seen that the objects of the present invention have beenfully and effectively accomplished. The embodiments have been shown anddescribed for the purposes of illustrating the functional and structuralprinciples of the present invention and is subject to change withoutdeparture from such principles. Therefore, this invention includes allmodifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of viewing live and recorded contents,comprising the steps of: (a) forming a download path between a capturingdevice and a remote control center through Internet to enable downloadcontent from said remote control center to be downloaded to saidcapturing device through said download path; (b) configuring an uploadpath within said download path; (c) uploading upload content captured bysaid capturing device to said remote control center through said uploadpath; and (d) providing a communication channel between said remotecontrol center and a receiving device to enable said upload contentcaptured by said capturing device to be viewed by said receiving devicein a live manner through Internet.
 2. The method, as recited in claim 1,wherein said download content is downloaded to said capturing device atthe same time when said upload contend is uploaded to said remotecontrol center.
 3. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein saidupload path is partitioned from said download path to share a bandwidththereof.
 4. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein said upload pathis formed within said download path to bypass a firewall of said remotecontrol center.
 5. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein saidupload content is uploaded from said capturing device to said remotecontrol center at the same time when said upload content is captured bysaid capturing device in a live manner.
 6. The method, as recited inclaim 1, wherein said remote control center comprises a cloud storagethat said upload content is uploaded to said cloud storage from saidcapturing device.
 7. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein saiddownload content is a map data downloaded to said capturing device. 8.The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein said download content is aGPS data downloaded to said capturing device.
 9. The method, as recitedin claim 1, wherein said download content is a firmware update datadownloaded to said capturing device.
 10. The method, as recited in claim1, wherein said download content is a control data downloaded to saidcapturing device for remotely controlling an operation of said capturingdevice.
 11. A system for viewing live and recorded contents through aremote control center, comprising: at least a capturing device forcapturing live and recorded contents as uploaded content; and acommunication link wirelessly linked to said capturing device to saidremote control center through Internet, wherein said communication linkcomprises: a download path formed between said capturing device and saidremote control center to enable download content from said remotecontrol center to be downloaded to said capturing device through saiddownload path; an upload path configured within said download path,wherein said upload content captured by said capturing device isuploaded to said remote control center through said upload path; and acommunication channel between said remote control center and a receivingdevice to enable said upload content captured by said capturing deviceto be viewed by said receiving device in a live manner through Internet.12. The system, as recited in claim 11, wherein said download content isdownloaded to said capturing device at the same time when said uploadcontend is uploaded to said remote control center.
 13. The system, asrecited in claim 11, wherein said upload path is partitioned from saiddownload path to share a bandwidth thereof.
 14. The system, as recitedin claim 11, wherein said upload path is formed within said downloadpath to bypass a firewall of said remote control center.
 15. The system,as recited in claim 11, wherein said upload content is uploaded fromsaid capturing device to said remote control center at the same timewhen said upload content is captured by said capturing device in a livemanner.
 16. The system, as recited in claim 11, wherein said remotecontrol center is a cloud storage that said upload content is uploadedto said cloud storage from said capturing device.
 17. The system, asrecited in claim 11, wherein said download content is a map datadownloaded to said capturing device.
 18. The system, as recited in claim11, wherein said download content is a GPS data downloaded to saidcapturing device.
 19. The system, as recited in claim 11, wherein saiddownload content is a firmware update data downloaded to said capturingdevice.
 20. The system, as recited in claim 11, wherein said downloadcontent is a control data downloaded to said capturing device forremotely controlling an operation of said capturing device.